As COVID-19 numbers continue to decline, more and more things in our community are beginning to return to normal – or some semblance of it, at least.

One sign of the times: the town of Carrboro has announced that the annual Freight Train Blues music series will be back in person this year, for the first time since 2019.

Now in its eighth year, the spring concert series is a collaboration between the town of Carrboro, WUNC radio, and the Music Maker Relief Foundation. Organizers kept the series going during the pandemic by holding it on the radio airwaves – including 97.9 The Hill in 2020, with performances from artists ranging from Phil Cook to Hiss Golden Messenger to Mandolin Orange (now Watchhouse).

This year’s Freight Train Blues series will run from May 13-June 10, with free concerts at Carrboro Town Commons on Friday evenings from 6:30-8:30. The series begins on Friday, May 13, with Hermon Hitson and Harvey Dalton Arnold, and wraps up on June 10 with the Music Maker Blues Revue.

The Freight Train Blues Music Series is named in honor of Carrboro blues legend Elizabeth Cotten, whose signature song was “Freight Train.” It’s a co-production of the Hillsborough-based Music Maker Relief Foundation, which works to promote the work of American roots musicians and support them financially.

This year’s lineup includes:

Friday, May 13: Hermon Hitson and Harvey Dalton Arnold

Friday, May 20: Sacred Soul of North Carolina Revue (Bishop Albert Harrison & the Gospel Tones, Big James Barrett & the Golden Jubilees, the Johnsonaires, and the Glorifying Vines Sisters) and the Weaver Gospel Singers Tribute (presented in partnership with the Marian Cheek Jackson Center)

Friday, May 27: Hard Drive and the Branchettes

Friday, June 3: La Banda de los Guanajuatenses and Joe Troop with Larry Bellorín

Friday, June 10: Music Maker Blues Revue (featuring Gail Ceasar, Tad Walters, and Lil’ Jimmy Reed)

Photo via MusicMaker.org.

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